Chris Hayes (Fowler, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise this evening to speak about Australia's great achievement in developing a truly diverse and multicultural community, one that allows opportunity for all. Today multiculturalism in Australia is about a shared sense of nationhood forged through mutual respect, common values and a commitment to fairness. I have the honour of representing the most multicultural electorate in the whole of Australia, which stands as an example to the nation of all the benefits that come from true diversity in culture, traditions and indeed religions. More than half my electorate were born overseas and in fact one-third of my community come from an Indochinese background. I represent one of the largest Asian communities outside Asia itself. As a result I have been able to witness the great contribution that the Chinese-based organisations in Western Sydney make to our local community and Australia at large.

Because I have such a large Indochinese community I have decided to look a little more closely at the history of their migration to Australia. Looking at the history, it is clear that, although today we have much to be proud of in terms of diversity and multiculturalism, there are certain parts of our history that we cannot be proud of. A large number of Chinese immigrated to Australia in the 1850s during the period of the gold rush. Coinciding with this migration various discriminatory laws were introduced specifically targeting the Indochinese. For instance, in 1855 the poll tax of Victoria was enacted, which imposed a £10 tax on the entry of Indochinese immigrants to the state as well as levying on them a residential tax of £12 per year. This gave disproportionate advantage to Australian-born miners in particular, resulting in great tensions on the goldfields and explosive riots in Victoria and New South Wales in the 1860s.

While celebrating Federation in 1901, Australia also introduced a number of exclusionary laws to be included in the Immigration Restriction Act, known as the White Australia policy. Again targeting the Indochinese community, it resulted in hardship and division within families and effectively prevented them from being able to reunite. It was not until the Labor government under Gough Whitlam in 1973 that this highly discriminatory policy was repealed.

I am aware that a large number of other nations similarly had regrettable policies but have taken steps to at least acknowledge these past injustices. For instance, in 2002 the then New Zealand Prime Minister, Helen Clark, made a formal apology to the Chinese population and their descendants in relation to the levying of the poll tax because it imposed a discriminatory imposition on Indochinese. She acknowledged the hardship that it imposed and also the damaging impact it had on families. She stated:

We believe an act of reconciliation is required to ensure that full closure can be reached on this chapter in our nation's history.

Subsequent to that, in 2006 the Canadian Prime Minister apologised for the Chinese tax that had been levied during the late 1800s. In 2011 and 2012 the United States Senate and House of Representatives passed resolutions expressing their regret for the passage of discriminatory laws against the Chinese in America, including the Chinese Exclusion Act.

In Australia we are yet to properly recognise our regrettable treatment of the Chinese people who contributed so much to the building of our nation. The Chinese have made and continue to make a tremendous contribution to Australia's economy and our community, but the scars of the past certainly remain. I recently met with Kingsley Liu and Erin Chew from Project 1855, an online Chinese-Australian group seeking a formal statement of regret. Acknowledging past injustice is an important step for a mature community as it moves to realise the full potential of its people. When I see the colour, vibrancy and diversity of the community that I represent, I know full well that multiculturalism is something that we truly can be proud of in this country.